cause we like to drag things out: a note on confrontation and the potential for violent reactions.
Posted by
colin (aka colinski)
Aug 27 '13, 11:03
|
i understand that i could be gunned down by someone who is completely unbalanced. that's part of the risk and although i am "instigating", the feeling of right and wrong and being vocal about poor behavior is very strong. i'm also the guy that will tell someone who just leaves their cart in the parking spot next to theirs that there is a cart corral. and a number of other things. my wife feels the same, so i don't feel that i'm taking unreasonable risks that make her uncomfortable and vice versa. we both are aware of human nature.
the other side of that coin is i think most people assume i'm the unbalanced one :) if someone is willing to make that first move, most people with any sanity will back down especially considering they're in the wrong and it's not really a big deal.. their car wasn't dented. allie and i in our own ways look less than friendly. that's not the case, we're very friendly, but we don't exactly exude kind and cuddly.
bicycling is the same way. i know the rules of the road and i stick to them pretty strictly. i also hold drivers on the road to the same rules. some days i'm more confrontational than others, but i especially do not back down when someone intentionally comes on top of me or forces me off the road... i will absolutely fuck your car up if it comes to that - that's my only exception to not being destructive. if you're willing to knowingly risk my life, you're losing a wing mirror. again, allie is the same way.
allie and i discussed this the other day. we figure it's a matter of time until one of us is serious injured or killed out riding. it scares me and i hope we're wrong, but we bike so much and people are such incredible selfish pricks on the road, it's going to happen. we're ok with it.. it's part of life and we'll deal.
we don't bring on confrontation just for the sake of it, but we have little patience for poor behavior that people pretend to not know they're doing. they know. they fucking know. you know that you're being a huge dick. not a bad person, but sometimes you need your behavior checked. i've been in that spot and appreciated an aggressive response. it helps.
on an aside, i feel like we're becoming less suited for life in cities or near people. we probably sooner rather than later need to get out into the country and begin getting some isolation in. i'm tired of people, tired of shitty behavior and unreasonable responses. it's disheartening.
anyhoo....
|
Responses:
|
